


The Sweetest Christmas

by Parasite_Satellite



Series: Golden Candy [5]
Category: Fortnite (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, Christmas Presents, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Mistletoe, Wholesome, cliffhanger ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-02
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-14 21:54:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29798424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Parasite_Satellite/pseuds/Parasite_Satellite
Summary: Christmas is coming up, and Zoey wants to make sure that she and Midas can celebrate the holidays together without exposing their secret relationship.
Relationships: Midas/Zoey (Fortnite)
Series: Golden Candy [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2171937
Kudos: 1





	1. Part 1

The air was getting colder on the island of Apollo. Winter had arrived, and along with it came the festive holidays. Everyone on Apollo loved the Christmas season. From the snow to the presents. And the gorgeous decorations, which covered all the homes and trees on the island. Though it seems everyone was most enthusiastic about the snow. Apollo is a strange island, holding various magical objects and being subjugated by some of the most mind-blowing natural events known to man. One remarkable thing to happen on Apollo is that, regardless of the weather. It will always snow around Christmas. Last year on Christmas day, the entire island became covered in pure white snow, now reports were coming in of snow appearing in Catty Corner, Retail Row, Misty Meadows, and Lazy Lake. Everyone was becoming excited about the winter festivities. 

"Are you sure you haven't left your car keys at home?" Zoey questioned, looking down on Power Chord as they crawled under her coffee table, gazing around the blue carpet. A couple of minutes ago, Power Chord entered Zoey's house in a panic, saying that she left her car keys here when she and a couple of other Zoey's friends hanged out in her home last night. 

"Zoey, I know for a certainty that I lost them here," Power Chord grunted with annoyance, moving from under the table to look back at Zoey. "Besides," She pulled out her phone and shoved it in Zoey's face. "I have an app that tracks my car keys. It's saying they're here."

The green-haired girl took a small step back as she stared into the phone screen. The phone displayed an aerial black and green grid shot of Holly Hedges. In the middle, a small dot was beeping inside the grid image of Zoey's house. "Well, would you look at that," Zoey sighed in a whisper as Power Chord turned around and went back on her frustrating search. 

"They have to be around here. I promised the rest of the band that I'll be there for rehearsals in Sweaty Sands today. I can't miss it."

"Hey, if you're worried about being late, I can call a taxi for you."

"Fat chance!" Power Chord huffed, leaving her search from the table to underneath the sofa in the living room. "If I arrive in a bloody taxi, I'm never going to hear the end of it, especially from Stage Slayer." 

As Power Chord finished looking under the cushions, she went past Zoey and into the kitchen. Zoey followed her, trying to think of another way to get her out of the house. It's not like Zoey hated Power Chord. It's just she arrived here at the worst possible time. She smiled, speaking in a caring tone. "How about I drive you there. Surely it wouldn't hurt for a friend to take you there." 

Power Chord stopped her search and looked back to Zoey. She blurted out loud. "Wait. I haven't checked upstairs."

Zoey couldn't help but shake in her boots as Power Chord dashed passed her and darted straight up the stairs. Her plus rushed, the colour drained from her face, and her stomach sank. Zoey quickly followed Power Chord behind her. "Wait!" Zoey shrieked as she reached the top of the stairs. She noticed Power Chord moving her hand to the handle attached to her bedroom door. Zoey could feel the sweat dripping off her forehead. "Stop," She yelled, moving her body to cover the bedroom door.

"What is it?" Power Chord asked. Confusion and annoyance were rising in her voice. 

"Are you sure you want to go into my room?" Zoey questioned, her voice louder than typical. She turned her head to the side while keeping eye contact on Power Chord. "Are you absolutely sure?"

"Positive," Power Chord deadpanned, reaching out for the handle again. "Look, If you worried about me finding something and judging you for it. I won't. chances are I have more fucked up things at home." She gently nudged Zoey out the way as she opened the door in front of her and walked in. 

Zoey followed close behind, her eyes darting around the room before making eye contact with the closet next to her. Quickly, she leaned on the closed closet door. The sound of Zoey's body hitting the door caused Power Chord to stare back at her. "I doubt it's in the closet," She asserted with a panic tone, followed by a forced laugh. 

Power Chord replied in her usual tone. "Yeah, don't worry about me looking in there, I'm desperate, but I'm not that desperate." She walked towards Zoey's bedside table, stopping briefly to admire the small Christmas decorations on her walls. 

While Power Chord continued her search, Zoey kept her eyes locked on the older girl, making sure she didn't make any sudden moves towards the closet. Zoey stressed, still with a loud voice. "I doubt it's in here. It's probably in another room. We should leave-"

"Not until I've looked everywhere," Power Chord butted in as she went to look under Zoey's bed. 

The air was getting colder in her room. Zoey took a couple of breaths to calm herself down. She needed to get Power Chord out of her room. "Ah, found them," Like an early Christmas miracle, Power Chord walked towards Zoey with a smile on her face. In her hand were her car keys. "They were on your bloody windowsill, behind the plants," Power Chord chuckled, placing them in her pocket. "Good thing I found them. I was becoming tempted to look in your closet," Zoey uttered a forced laugh as Power Chord chuckled at her words. 

Zoey moved away from the closet as Power Chord made her way outside of the bedroom, stopping under the door frame to talk to Zoey. "Sorry for almost turning your house upside down, mate. I can't afford to lose another pair of keys. Hey, to make up for it, you have my full permission to tear up my own home if you lose anything."

"It's ok, PC. All you did was move my cushions around."

Suddenly, the sound of a thud emerged from Zoey's closet. Her eyes shrunk to pinpricks the moment she heard the noise. Power Chord looked to Zoey, her head tilting to the side as she gazed at her with a confused expression. 

"Oh-umm, it must be my shoe pile," Zoey sputtered out, giving a fake smile to her friend.

"I swear I have nightmares about your closet," Power Chord joked as the two girls said their goodbyes to one another. Zoey stayed in her room, watching her walk down the stairs. 

The moment she heard the front door closing, Zoey breathed a sigh of relief. As soon as she was sure the coast was clear, she turned around and opened the closet door. 

"Woah!" Stumbling from behind and falling back first on the carpeted floor. Zoey looked down to see Midas staring back at her. "Zoey, dear," He muttered in a casual tone. "I adore you, but your closet is a nightmare."

"Sorry," Zoey giggled, kneeling to get closer to his face. "I've had plans to clear it out, but something always seems to come up." She caressed his cheek. "You ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, better now that Power Chord is gone. Don't get me wrong, I like Power Chord, but she isn't known for keeping secrets. Can you imagine if she saw me?" 

"I don't blame you. I still remember PC telling Aura about her surprise birthday party. Though I think she'd be more surprised seeing you in my closet than learning that we're a couple." 

"I'll have you know that this was the only hiding spot I could find at the last minute. I didn't have a lot of choices here." 

The two shared a mutual chuckle before Zoey leaned down to kiss him on his forehead. "Come on," She chuckled as she stood up, grabbed onto his hand and started to pull. "The floor cannot be comfy for you."

"Alright, I'm getting up," Midas replied with a smile, moving his body off from the bedroom floor. The moment he was off the ground, he pulled Zoey closer to him. Their hands still intertwined as Midas murmured affectionately. "Speaking of earlier, when do you want to tell people about us?" 

Zoey smiled wide, keeping Midas close to her. "To be honest, I want to tell them as soon as we can. Though is it ok if we only tell our close friends first?" 

"Works fine by me," Suddenly, an idea popped into Midas' head. "How about we tell them at the Christmas Eve party?"

"I don't think that would be a good idea. Everyone in Apollo is going to be there. The nerves would get to me."

"Wait, is everyone going to be there? Have I greatly underestimated how big this party is going to be?"

"'Greatly underestimated' would be an understatement." Zoey pulled away from Midas as her voice grew more bubbly. "The Christmas Eve party is the biggest yearly event on the island if you exclude the New Years Day fireworks. We've been doing this since the early days of Athena."

"What exactly happens at the Christmas Eve party?"

"Oh, right, it's your first Christmas here! Well, what happens is everyone exchanges gifts with people if they can't be with them on Christmas Day. Also, there is a ton of fun Christmas themed party games to play. Not to mention the karaoke and the delicious food they serve. Oh Midas, you're going to love it." 

The two embraced in a quick hug as Zoey bounced with joy. 

"Plus, we'll be able to spend the Christmas season together."

Midas couldn't help but grin at Zoey as he held her close. As much as he wanted to spend Christmas Day with her, he had other plans. Ever since Soul split into Ghost and Shadow, Jules and Midas haven't been able to spend Christmas with one another. This year was going to be their first Christmas together in over three years. Midas had made a promise to Jules that it would only be him and a small number of trusted friends that would be spending the holidays with her. Moreover, Zoey already promised to spend Christmas with a close group of friends as well. 

"Maybe next year, we could spend the holiday together," Midas murmured. The two started to sway in romantic bliss.


	2. Part 2

"Merry Christmas Eve!" The radio screamed as Zoey sat down on the dining chair to eat her breakfast. She gazed out the window to see the small fake snowflakes stuck to her window. "Hope you all got everything ready for the Christmas Eve party I know I have. Last year we hosted the party in Homely Hills. This year, the party is going to held in Rainbow Rentals, baby!" Zoey took a glance at the clock before picking up her metal spoon. "For those unaware of where it is, Rainbow Rentals is south-west of Holly Hedges, on the beach next to Logjam Wood-works." Unlike most people, Zoey was familiar with Rainbow Rentals as she spent the holidays there with her friends at the start of the year.

Another voice interrupted the host on the radio. "Fingers crossed it'll snow tonight. Remember last year when we didn't get any snow until Christmas Day, and it covered the whole island."

"The sooner, the better Sparkle Specialist. Honestly, I'm annoyed that Retail, Misty, Catty and Lazy Lake got snow before us."

"To be fair, Asmodeus, they're located near the mountains."

While the two radio hosts talked, Zoey finished up her breakfast, picking up the bowl and spoon and heading to the sink to clean up. As she cleaned, she looked out the window again, watching her neighbours walking around. Ever since the 17th of December, the snow has been spreading around the south-east of Apollo. Though not enough to build a snowman or do anything interesting with it, excluding snowball fights. 

"We hope everyone has their presents ready for the gift exchange tonight. Before I forget to mention, the party is going to start later than usual. Instead of the regular time of 7:30 PM, the party will begin at 8:10 PM. But don't worry, we'll still have food prepared for everyone." 

Once she finished cleaning and putting away the dishes, Zoey turned off the radio before picking up a large red bag placed near one of the table legs. She looked through it, double-checking to make sure everything was in there before leaving her home for the morning. Hours earlier, they texted Starlie to see if they were available today to help Zoey wrap some presents. She finished wrapping up all the gifts that she's planning to give out tonight at the party. There were only three left to do. The only problem for her was that she ran out of wrapping paper. At first, she didn't know what to do, these presents were for Midas, and she wasn't ready to tell anyone, out of fear of it becoming leaked. The only person Zoey trusted about telling her secret to was Starlie. She was someone that Zoey holds a lot of respect for Starlie never judges when a person comes to her with a problem, not to mention offering help to others regardless of the situation. The two were quite similar in the sense of helping their friends, not to mention the two both having a colourful taste in fashion and personality.

When she stepped outside, she took a glance at all the other nearby houses. They were all decorated in colourful Christmas lights that sparkled in a million colours, along with some fake snowflakes that covered the windows. But what caught Zoey's eyes were the giant fake candy canes and plastic Christmas trees that decorated their front gardens. She looked back on her own home, seeing the lights, snowflakes, and holly that adorned her house. She remembered Lace and Starlie coming round to help set up the decorations. 

Zoey stopped when her eyes saw her neighbor's house, seeing a small plastic tree next to the front door. Next to it were her neighbors', the notorious duo of thievery and crime, Aura and Guild. They were out fixing up their outside decorations. The two stopped to wave at Zoey before returning to their work. Zoey waved back to them as she walked down the street towards Starlie's house. 

"Just a minute," A voice called out inside the house as Zoey waited by the front door. She shuffled in her spot, admiring the Christmas lights that hung above the door frame. They took notice that the lights appeared to be in the shape of stars. That makes sense considering who lives here. Before Zoey could think of anything else, the door opened. On the other side, wearing a multicoloured scarf, pink woolly boots, and a white jumper covered in festive rainbow patterns, was Starlie. "Hey, Zoey. Merry Christmas Eve."

"Merry Christmas Eve to you too," Zoey laughed, holding onto the large red bag in front of her. "I can see you're ready for the Christmas party. I thought it wasn't going to start until later?" 

"It is. I thought it would be best to get ready early instead of leaving it till the last minute, again. Now come inside. You must be freezing out here." Starlie started to usher Zoey inside the house. 

Zoey smiled while Starlie closed the door behind her. The radio was playing a compilation of Christmas tunes, and the living room sparkled as various Christmas decorations covered the place. What made Zoey's smile grew was the breathtaking Christmas tree. It was pure white. Almost every branch had a rainbow ornament on it. "Oh, Starlie, your home looks incredible," Zoey whispered, adoring every detail she could see. They turned to her left to see Slumber walking down the stairs. "Hey, Slumber," She sang, waving a hand at him. The starry creature responded with a jingle smile, waving his hand to her as well.

"Glad you like it." Starlie chirped, standing next to Zoey. "I wanted to make this Christmas as perfect as I can. It's me and Laces first Christmas together."

"Well, from what I can see, you did a fantastic job. Do you think you can decorate my home next year?"

"Let me think about it. No." The two girls shared a quick chuckle as Slumber walked over to them. 

Zoey questioned Starile. "Again, are you sure it's alright helping me with the presents?"

"Zoey, I told you before it's ok. I'll gladly help a friend who needs help with wrapping a few presents. I'm sure Slumber would love to help as well." Starlie pointed to Slumber when she uttered his name. The starry creature responded with a nod of the head as another jingle escaped his lips. 

"As long as your ok with it," Zoey spoke, taking a glance in the bag. "I thought I had everything I need for today turns out I forgot to check the amount of wrapping paper I have."

"Luckily for you, I'm overstocked with the stuff. We'll help you finish up the presents you have left. There's some wrapping paper on the table. We could do that there if you like."

"Umm, Starlie, before we wrap the presents, I need you to know something about them."

"They're not mine, are they?" Starlie joked as the three sat down at the table.

"Oh no, far from that. It's just these presents there-umm. Well, you see, there for my boyfriend." 

If Starlie had been holding anything, she would have dropped it. She looked at Zoey, eyes wide and mouth open at her friend's words. Meanwhile, Slumbers eyes darted from Starile to Zoey, looking just as shocked from the news. "Wait, boyfriend?" Starlie gasped as she looked to Zoey for conformation. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

In response, Zoey nodded her head, placing the large bag on the table. "Yes, but don't tell anyone, ok. You're the only person who knows, other than Skye. Promise me you two won't tell anyone." 

"I promise," a small giggle escaped Starlie's lips. "Oh my goodness, Zoey, I'm so happy for you. How long have you been dating?"

"Around the start of the month, he's really nice." Zoey couldn't help but blush at her words. "We're not planning to tell anyone until after Christmas, so I appreciate it if it doesn't come out. The reason I wanted to mention it is because one of the presents has his face on it. I didn't want you asking questions about it." 

Starlie placed an assuring hand on Zoey's own. They smiled as she reassured her with a caring tone. "Don't worry, Zoey. I'm not going to judge or announce it to the world. As long as your happy with him, it's all fine with me. Now, speaking of presents."

"Oh right," Zoey moved her hands inside the bag, trying to pick out one of the presents she had. Almost by chance, she picked up the gift that had his face on it. Zoey could feel her cheeks growing red. "Ok. Best to get this one out the way. Just don't make a big deal out of it." She handed Starlie the gift.

"I won't. You know me, I'm not one to judge."

The moment Starlie was handed the present and took a look at it, her expression changed. Her mouth opened wide as their eyes darted to the gift and Zoey. Slumber leaned over to Starlie to see the present. He looked to Zoey before covering his mouth with his hand. 

Starile gasped. "What? Wow-I, Zoey, this is the last person I would have expected. Then again, I never knew what your type was. I can't believe it, Zoey. I'm glad you two found each other."

"Thanks, Starlie, I know me and Midas are the last two people anyone would expect to date, but I deeply care about him. I love him. You think he would like the presents?" Zoey pulled out the other two present she got for him. 

"Oh, Zoey. He's going to love them." 

The three friends smiled as they started to wrap the gifts up in her iconic festive wrapping paper.


	3. Part 3

The ride to Rainbow Rentals was bumpy, to say the least for her. To reach Rainbow Rentals, you need to drive off-road for a few minutes. The problem was that the off-road is infamous for its rocky path that consists of countless potholes, not to mention the amount of dust that appears from the wheels, causing heavy dust clods to form on the roads. 

Zoey shook her head to rid the thought of that dreaded road. She didn't need to think about it. Right now, she was at the Christmas Eve party, laying by one of the beach rentals, drinking hot chocolate from her festive cup. They gazed upon the Christmas themed beach in front of them. Tables scattered around with various types of food, Christmas lights strung up on the rentals and decorated the beach. Not to mention the assorted Christmas party themed activities people were playing with, such as tabletop games with a winter theme or beer pong, were the cups were decorated with Reindeer images, much to Dolph's annoyance. Even the insides of the rentals had a festive twist to them. Zoey looked through the window of the rental she was laying on. Inside she saw people exchanging presents in front of a small Christmas tree. 

The sound of Christmas music and people laughing made Zoey beam with joy. She loved the Christmas season, specifically when she spent it with her friends. She looked back to everyone again, seeing friends and strangers spend the night together. Some decked out in Christmas themed fashion wear, while others wore one or two merry things. There were even a small number of people that didn't wear anything festive. Zoey wasn't one of them. She went all out this year for Christmas. They were wearing a festive pink jumper, a red skirt with a fake white fur trim at the bottom, and glittery silver leggings. The jumper in question had little red and white patterns on it. But to Zoey, her standout piece of clothing was a deer headband covered in fake holly and flowers while mistletoe dangled from the antlers. 

"Merry Christmas, Zoey," The sound of a cheery voice next to her brought Zoey out of her trance. She turned around to see Skye and TNTina standing by her. Both with a gift in hand.

Skye smiled, stretching her arms out to Zoey. The teenage girl wore a blue and white Christmas jumper with a blue Santa hat to match. "I hope you like it," She bubbled as she handed Zoey a medium-sized present. Zoey couldn't help but squeal as she held to gift close to her, giving it a gentle shake for Skye's amusement. "Can you guess what it is?" Skye questioned, her smile never fading.

"Let me see, can I eat it?" Zoey asked in a joking tone.

"Nope."

"Ok, is it Ollie?"

"No again." Skye pulled her Santa hat up to show the Ollie beanie was still on her head, causing Zoey to laugh.

"Glad to see Ollie is enjoying the celebrations. Now then," Zoey gave the box another shake, she could hear something moving around in there, but she couldn't tell what it was. "Umm, is it something I can decorate my room with?"

Skye put a finger to her lips as she spoke in a playful tone. "You have to wait and see for tomorrow."

"But you didn't say no," Zoey replied with a chuckle, placing the present in the blue bag to her left were her other presents from her friends were. "Thank you, Skye, knowing you the present is going to be incredible."

"Wait until you open my present," Tina interrupted the two as she handed her gift to Zoey with a grin. TNTina was also dressed up for the party, wearing snowflake hair accessories and a snowflake covered jacket. The present in question was smaller than Skye's, but it appeared to be longer.

"It's not going to explode, is it?" Zoey joked as she carefully placed the present in the blue bag as well.

"I hope not. Well, I didn't make it, so if your house does catch on fire, you can't blame me." 

Zoey looked back to her two friends as she radiated with joy. "Thank you both for the presents. I'll make sure they'll be the first ones I open. Speaking of presents." She turned to the red bag on her right, picking out two small gifts in blue and yellow wrapping paper. "Merry Christmas, Skye and Tina."

Tina pulled a crooked grin while Skye's eyes grew wide. Zoey double-checked the labels before handing them to her friends. "Thank you, Zoey," the two sang in unintentional unison as TNTina placed the present to her ear, shaking it for a sound while Skye held hers up to her eyes, closely examining it. 

"No problem, guys, I wanted to give you something that shows how much I care about both of you as friends."

"Aww, Zoey," Skye grinned as she placed her present in her backpack. "I'll open your present last. You know what they say, save the best till last."

As TNTina placed her present away, she spotted a present poking out of the red bag. "Hey, Zoey?" Tina questioned her friend. "You still got some presents to give out?"

Zoey looked at the red bag before responding to her friend. "Oh yeah, there's still a few presents left, but I haven't seen my friend yet. That's why I'm by the blue rental I'm waiting for them."

"Oh, ok, we could help you look for them if you like."

"Thanks, Tina, but I'm quite alright here. It's not like I missed out on the party. I already got some food and played some of the party games."

"Fair enough, we don't want you to get lonely."

"Hey, ladies!" A voice not too far brought the three friends attention to them. Calling out to them was Tailor, Crystal, Blaze, Vector and Street Striker. The five holding onto large crackers, standing on the beach. "You guys want to pull some crackers with us. We promise the prizes inside are good this time." 

"Save one for me!" Skye called. She hugged goodbye to Zoey before running off to join the large group. 

Zoey took notice of TNTina, who appeared to dawn a sad smile while she gazed at Skye. "I'm glad she's having fun." She muttered. "You wouldn't believe it, but she didn't want to go to the party at first. She won't show it but, Skye's been upset. It's her first Christmas without her family."

Zoey looked back to Skye to see her pulling crackers with her friends, giggling all the way. It can't be easy not spending Christmas with family, and it's probably worse when you're a kid. It's the main reason why people started hosting the Christmas Eve party. So people can meet up for Christmas, play fun games and exchange gifts with friends, so it can take their mind off the fact that they're not going to be with their family for the holidays. Zoey shook her head. She can't remember the last time she ate one of her father's delicious Christmas cookies. 

"Glad to see she's doing alright," Zoey whispered as she finished off her hot chocolate. "Skye's lucky she's got friends like you to be there for her."

"Yeah," Tina agreed. "We're trying to make this the best Christmas for her because I know that feeling of spending Christmas alone, and I don't want her to go through that. Not to mention, you're a good friend too, Zoey. Skye's taking a liking to you, and I can see why. You're pretty cool."

Zoey felt her cheeks blush with pride from TNTina's words. Before she was about to speak, she felt her phone vibrating in her skirt pocket. Picking it up, Zoey stared at her screen to see a notification. She's got a text message from Midas. "Oh," Zoey spoke to Tina. "I think my friends here I should probably give them their present."

TNTina took another peek into the red bag to see the colourful wrapping paper before waving goodbye to Zoey and joining the others for cracker pulling. "Well, I hope they like it. Talk to you soon, and Merry Christmas." 

"Merry Christmas." Zoey waved as she started to look through her text messages. Tapping on Midas' name and seeing their shared history of text messages. Zoey couldn't help but giggle when she saw the texts. Scrolling to the bottom, she saw the recent text message from him. 

"Hey, I just arrived with the others. Where are you?" 

Zoey glanced at the red bag, smiling when she replied to the message. "I'm by the blue rental, next to the hill. :)" 

In a couple of seconds, Zoey's phone beeped, letting her know she's got another message from him. "Got it, I'll be right there. Love you." 

"Love you too. :)" The two had promised yesterday to meet up at the Christmas party to share some quality time and to exchange presents for one another. Zoey looked back to the red bag, seeing the three gifts laying inside, each covered in colourful, starry wrapping paper. 

Suddenly an announcement echoed through the beach. "Attention everyone! The dance floor is open for business. Get to the beach and bust out some moves!" Almost instantly, people dashed to the large dancefloor that illuminated in multicoloured lights. All but Zoey were dancing away to the loud, upbeat music emitted through the speakers surrounding them. Zoey's foot tapped to the beat as she closed her eyes and listened to the music. 

The sound of footsteps heading towards her brought Zoey out of her musical trance. Looking to her left, she smiled when she saw a familiar face. Wearing a black trench coat, a red glitter tie, and a red glitter Santa hat to match was Midas. In his hands were two bags, both coloured in dark purple. Next to him was Brutus, wearing a simple green tie with little snowmen on it. 

"Hey, Midas," Zoey sang, picking up her bags and walking over to the two. "Hello to you too, Brutus." 

"Ma'am," The larger man replied in his usual deep voice and cold tone. 

"Hello, Zoey." Midas smiled as he handed one of the purple bags to Brutus. "I would have gotten here earlier, but we had to do the gift exchange first." Brutus began to shake the purple bag in response to Midas' words. The sound of presents moving in the bag caught Zoey's attention. 

Zoey looked back to Brutus and Midas as she reached her hand into one of her pocket skirts. "Speaking of the gift exchange, Merry Christmas, Brutus." She smiled, pulling out a small present decorated in silver and black wrapping paper. The gift was as small as her hand. 

"Thank you," Brutus replied in a monotoned voice, placing the present in the purple bag. 

"No problem, so you guys enjoying the party?"

Midas answered casually. "To tell you the truth, this party is incredible. I can't remember the last time I had this much fun at a party even Brutus is enjoying the festivities." He pointed to Brutus, the older man nodding to his friend's words.

"Hey Guys, you going to join us?" A voice called out to the three from the dance floor. Turning around, they saw Skye waving towards them as she danced with everyone else. 

"We'll be right there," Brutus called out to Skye as he started to walk to the group, turning around to see Midas and Zoey looking at him. "Are you two coming?"

"I'm good," Midas replied. "I'll catch up with you soon, ok."

"Alright then, I'll see you in a few minutes, and Zoey, Merry Christmas."

Zoey chuckled, waving goodbye to Brutus. "Merry Christmas to you too." 

Soon the two were both sharing a quick smile. The music continued the blear in the background. Zoey noticed Midas' looking at her headband. "I like your outfit," he flattered. "Especially the headband."

Zoey blushed, pushing some hair away from her eyes. "Thanks, I made it myself. I wanted to go all out this year. You ready to spend Christmas together?"

Midas shook the purple bag in his hand, his smirk growing wide. "More than ever."

Picking up the two bags with one hand while grabbing Midas with her other hand, she leaned closer to whisper in his ear. "Come on, let's find someplace cozy to open our presents." She leaned back to see Midas' working eye sparkling. 

"But where?"

"The green rental, of course, it's the only one that's empty, plus it would give us some privacy to be cute together."

"Alright then, dear, lead the way." 

The two chuckled together as they headed to the green rental.

Just like the other rentals, decorated with holly and fake tinsel, the green rental looked as festive as it could be. Inside, a calming Christmas song played on loop from a small radio on the counter. The sound of music and people cheering outside became muffled inside. It was perfect.

"Zoey, this is marvellous," Midas breathed, admiring the decorations that surrounded him. Zoey closed the door behind her as she leads Midas to the double sofa close by them. 

Sitting on each side, the two pulled their bags on the coffee table, both smiling at one another. "I'm glad you like it. Now, you're ready for the gift exchange?" Zoey questioned, adjusting her headband. 

"Before we do the gift exchange, I need to tell you something," Midas announced as one of his hands started to reach for the purple bag.

"What is it?"

"Well, I know you said that we should only give one present to each other, but I couldn't help myself," he proceeds to pull out three presents from his bag. "I know this isn't what we agreed to, but I wanted to treat you for the holidays. After all, what's better than one present, three of course." 

"Oh, Midas, that's so sweet of you. Don't worry, I went out and bought two extra gifts as well. I didn't know what to get you, so I bought whatever I thought you would like." 

The two shared a mutual laugh as Zoey pulled out the three presents from her red bag. "Looks like great minds think alike," Midas marvelled as he gazed at the gifts from Zoey. 

"So," Zoey started. "How are we going to do this?"

"We could take turns exchanging gifts one by one."

"That's a brilliant idea. Do you want to go first?" 

"Don't mind if I do," Midas prompted as he handed one of the gifts to Zoey. "I hope you like it."

Zoey held the present close, closely examining the gift in her hands. Black and gold wrapping paper covered its body. It's in the shape of a square, and it was half the length of her forearm. As she traced her fingers on it, Zoey noticed that it felt hard yet had pointed corners, though not sharp enough to cause harm. Suddenly, she felt a different feeling on one of the sides. It felt like paper. "Is this a book?" Zoey questioned, excitement rising in her voice. 

"You'll have to open it and see."

Without hesitating, Zoey began to rip through the wrapping paper. She took notice of the gift. It was indeed a book, with it being mostly white. On the front cover was an image of freshly cooked brownies on top of a yellow tray. On the top in bold red letters reads, 'The ultimate chocolate cookbook'. 

"Surprise," Midas quietly chorused. "I remember that you said how frustrated you were that you didn't know any chocolate-based treats, so I got this for you. It has over 100 recipes, including brownies, chocolate chip cookies and truffles." 

Zoey's eyes darted from the cookbook to Midas, mouth slightly opened, and eyebrows raised, a smile creeping up from the points of her lips. "Ah," she burst. "Midas, thank you, thank you, thank you, you have no idea how happy I am with this! Finally, I can make truffles!" She raised her arms out in the air for enthesis. "Though I'm going to need a taste tester, you wouldn't mind, would you?"

"Well, if your offering, I don't mind being the first to try your chocolate delicacies."

Looking back to the book and hugging it tightly, Zoey gazed back to Midas, her smile never fading. "Thank you," She whispered, placing the book to her side and picking up one of the presents for Midas. "I hope this present makes you just as happy as me."

Midas grinned as Zoey handed the present to him. It was noticeably heavier and bulkier compared to Zoey's gift. Zoey intently watched as Midas began to unwrap the present in front of him. Zoey saw Midas' eyes grow wide as the present layed unwrapped in front of him. 

"What do you think? I saw how upset you were when you found out your gramophone got destroyed from the flood, so I got you a record player along with some new vinyls to play on it." Zoey spoke in an upbeat tone as she gestured to the vinyl records that layed underneath the white coloured record player. "I checked, and the vinyls for your gramophone can work on the record player." 

"Zoey," Midas breathed, tracing his fingers across the record player, his smile growing as he stared at the new records. "This is incredible. I don't know what to say. I-thank you, this is the best present I've received." 

"Don't be too sure yet. You still have two more to go." Zoey sang as she placed the discarded wrapping paper in the bag. 

Midas placed the gift to the side as he handed another gift to Zoey. "I expect you're going to love this present as much as the last one." He smiled while he watched Zoey slowly open the next present. 

Just like the last present, this one was also in the shape of a square. However, it was smaller than the book, but it appeared to be heavier. It took Zoey a second to identify what was in her hands after she opened it. "Wait, is this-"

"Yes, it's a mini film projector," Midas began. "You can use it to watch whatever films you like at home. When I first got here at Apollo, I thought it was ridiculous that you could only watch movies in Risky Reels. It's even more ridiculous if you're a film fanatic. Now you can watch any movie you want at any time in your house. It even works outside." 

"Oh my goodness, you have no idea how badly I wanted one of these. Thank you, Midas. I can have a horror movie marathon now!" Zoey squeaked as she leaned in to hug Midas. A small giggle escaped her lips. 

"I'm glad you like it. I thought to myself, 'What would Zoey like?' and I remember you going on about your love of films, specifically horror movies. It just seemed like a perfect gift." 

"Well, it is, first the cookbook and now a movie projector. You've got my hypes up for the final gift."

"I think you're going to love the last gift as much as the others, but first, it's my turn now."

"Oh right," Zoey blushed, quickly reaching for the second present, her free hand scratching behind her neck. "To tell you the truth, I'm a little nervous about handing you this gift," she cautioned while handing the gift to him. "I made it myself, and I'm worried it might be a bit cheesy for you're liking."

In response, Midas placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder while his other hand held the flat present. "I won't think it's cheesy you made it. Everything you make is phenomenal."

Zoey's stomach fluttered with butterflies as Midas pulled away from her shoulder and went to open the gift slowly. "It's just I'm known for making sweets and candy. The present is something completely out of my comfort zone." 

The green-haired girl watched with intensity as Midas pulled the wrapping paper away, moving the picture for him to get a clearer view. "I thought it was romantic at the time." Zoey rambled. "It's a drawing of both of us. I drew it myself. I even took some classes to improve on anatomy. I understand if you don't like it."

Midas gazed at the picture placed inside a silver photo frame. It was a realistic monochrome drawing of the two of them on their first date. Everything about the picture was accurate. "Wow," He whispered in surprise as he slowly moved his head to meet her eyes. "I was right. Everything you make is phenomenal. Zoey, this is beautiful, not to mention romantic." 

The gentle tone of his voice brought some reassurance to Zoey. Her shoulders loosened while her face grew hotter. "You mean that?"

"Honestly, Zoe, this isn't cheesy at all. I love it, but I'm curious, why did you pick our first date to draw?"

"Well-I-umm, you see." Zoey shifted in her seat, scratching the back of her neck again. "It's because it's my favourite memory of us together."

Zoey saw Midas' cheek turn an identical shade of pink in reaction to her words. "To tell you the truth," he professed. "It's one of my many treasured memories with you, but it's not the favourite," Before Zoey could question him, Midas handed the final present to her. "This is." 

Curiosity rose within her as Zoey carefully unwrapped the large presents in front of her. Zoey looked down to see the gift. It was a star map. Staring at the constellations, she started to recognize them one by one. She muttered, "That's the tiger, and that's the rose. The mermaid is right in the centre." She looked at the top of the map to see the date, the 2nd of November 2020. 

"It's a star map of the Zodiacs we made up when we stargazed together." Midas proclaimed in a loving tone. "It's one of my favourite memories with you. There are many reasons why, because I enjoyed creating Zodiacs with you. I loved seeing you get excited when we found a new constellation together, and it was the first time in a long while where I felt safe. You made me feel safe in a time when I was so afraid of enemies attacking me at a moments notice. When I'm with you, I feel safe. That's why it's my favourite memory."

Her eyes began to grow misty, and her lip began to quiver. Zoey sniffed as she looked down at the star map again. The rose and the mermaid were connected with thin gold and pink lines respectively, "Oh, Midas," She sniffed, wiping a tear from her eye. "This is the most romantic gift I've ever received. I'm glad to know that I make you feel safe, just like how I feel safe with you. Words cannot express how much I love you right now."

"So I take it you like it then?" Midas joked, causing Zoey to giggle a little.

The two leaned in for a quick hug, Zoey making sure the star map was out of the way before doing so. As the two pulled away, Zoey gently wrapped the star map in a neat pile as she picked up the final gift. She gazed into his eyes, speaking in a loving tone. "Midas, every single one of your presents has touched my heart. You made me see just how much you care about me. They make me feel loved. I hope these presents did the same for you. For the final gift, I thought long and hard over what you liked the most," She handed Midas the present. It was in a flat, circular shape smaller than his hands. He held it close to his ear, shaking it slightly and hearing a quiet rattle inside before opening it. "I began thinking about what you like. You like gold, you love me, and you adore your friends. Then I realized what your favourite thing is, it's family."

Inside Midas' hand was a silver compass with a golden needle. On the back in fancy, black letters were the words. 'So you'll always find your home.' It took Midas a second to see that the compass wasn't pointing north. It was pointing west to the dance party outside. As Midas looked at the compass, Zoey continued to talk, her voice growing soft. "When it was just us, you always mentioned Jules. I remembered how upset you were when you realized you lost her after the flood. You told me how you two became separated after Soul split. I still recall the day you reunited with one another. It made me see that you valued family above all else, so with the help of Hemlock, I made you this compass, now it's a magic compass that always points you in the direction of Jules. More specifically, her heart, I did this so you two wouldn't worry about losing each other again. No matter where you are, you'll always know where Jules is." 

Silence filled the room. The radio had stopped playing Christmas music a while ago. The only thing Zoey could hear was the muffled music outside. The silence quickly ceased when Zoey saw Midas lift his head to her. The golden man looked back to her, his eyes growing misty. "Zoey, you shouldn't have," he breathed as he went to hug her. This hug was tighter than before. All Zoey could do was hold him close. "This is such a sweet gift, thank you. It's perfect. God, what did I do to deserve someone as amazing as you." He held on to every one of the presents Zoey gave him. 

In response, all Zoey could do was blush harder than before, holding onto all the gifts Midas gave her. "I could say the same to you." Zoey watched as a smile pricked from Midas' lips. "You know, I made another compass for Jules, it's just like yours, except its gold with a silver needle, and it points to your heart."

"You are too sweet, sometimes."

"Well, I am a candy maker. It's my job to be sweet."

The two smiled as Midas' caressed Zoey's cheek, both leaned forward, ready to kiss one another in romantic bliss. 

"Let's get this party started!" Their lips were inches away when the front door suddenly opened with a heavy force. Midas and Zoey pulled away as Sledgehammer strutted into the green rental, seemly unaware of the two in front of him. Zoey and Midas turned their heads away from one another. Both of their faces were as red as a tomato. Zoey watched Sledgehammer walk towards the counter, opening one of the cabinets and taking out some alcoholic drinks. 

"Uh, Sledgehammer," Zoey butted in, causing the man to turn in her direction. "Are you sure that's a good idea? Don't you remember what happened last year?" 

The bearded man chuckled, opening one of the bottles. "Relax, Z. It's not like anything bad happened."

"Hacivat got alcohol poisoning."

"But he survived, didn't he." Sledgehammer handed a bottle to her, yet Zoey refused to take it.

"You know I don't drink, Sledge."

"Not even tonight?"

"No."

"Fine, suit yourself." Sledgehammer moved his arm away from Zoey and towards Midas. "What about you. Do you want some?"

Midas replied in his usual cold tone. "I'm good, thanks." 

Sledgehammer pulled his arm back, still holding the alcohol, he mumbled. "Oh well, more for my mates and me then." He turned around, heading back out the door before he left. He looked back at the two. "Aren't you going to join us? I can't be fun staying inside a rental all night, were here to party."

Midas and Zoey looked back at one another. Midas spoke, "Yeah, we'll be out in a minute."

The two watched Sledgehammer leave the rental, meeting up with his friends. He didn't close the door. The loud music pooled into the rental as Midas looked at Zoey. Embarrassment covered his face. "I think I turned the sofa's armrest to gold," He admitted, pulling his arm away from the sofa. Sure enough, gold covered the top of the armrest. 

"It's alright, Midas," Zoey reassured him. "Rarely anyone comes here. I doubt anyone would notice."

Midas turned away to look at the party outside. His eyes widened, "Zoey, when does the party end?" he questioned.

"At 11:00 PM, why? What time is it?"

"10:30 PM."

Just like Midas, Zoey's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh shoot, we promised to meet our friends. Their probably wondering where we are."

"Guess the gift exchange is over then." Midas sighed. Both he and Zoey started to place their wrapping paper and gifts into their respective bags.

Standing by the door frame, Zoey and Midas looked out to the sea of people celebrating the festivities. Some were still dancing while others were playing party games. There were even some relaxing on the beach with their friends. 

With her spare hand, Zoey reached out to Midas, stroking his free hand. The look Midas gave her almost made her heart melt. "Hey, Midas," She whispered, making sure no one can hear them. "Thank you for the gift exchange. Even though we can't celebrate Christmas Day together, I'm glad we were able to spend time with one another on Christmas Eve. I will forever cherish this day."

"As will I, Zoey," Midas replied with a loving tone, their hands now intertwined, hidden from the public eye. "Every single thing about this day has been magical, the party, the gifts, and most certainly you. I don't know how this night could get better." 

A giggle escaped Zoey's as her eyes looked up, her finger pointing up the door-frame. "I think I know how." She sang in a flirting tone.

Midas followed Zoey's eyes, looking to see a surprising sight. Attached to the top of the door-frame was a piece of mistletoe. 

"Come on. You know the rules. We can't break tradition," Zoey flirted as Midas looked back to her, his cheeks growing pink again.

"What? Here? Now?"

"I don't see why not. All we have to do is be sneaky about it."

"Well, it's a good thing you're dating a former world-class spy then." Midas chuckled, pulling Zoey closer. They looked around themselves to make sure no one was looking in their general direction. The two grinned before they locked their lips on one another for a quick second. 

"I love you, Zoey," Midas murmured into her ear.

"I love you too, Midas,"

The two shared a mutual chuckle, quickly leaning in for another quick kiss.


	4. Epilogue

The sound of the familiar bubbly tune of her alarm woke Zoey from her dreams. Slowly pushing herself up, she yawned, reaching for her phone and turning off the alarm. Zoey gave a quick stretch before looking at her phone screen. 8:20 AM, Christmas Day was here. A part of Zoey wanted to snuggle back into the covers to get a couple of minutes shut-eye. She was far too cosy. But the promise she made about spending Christmas with her friends motivated her body out of the covers. 

Sitting up straight with her legs hanging over the bed, Zoey gave another yawn as she looked back to her phone, checking over for the weather and for any messages she might have missed. She soon noticed that she had two text messages sent to her, one from Midas and another from Power Chord. Her brow furrowed, wondering what the texts were about. Following her heart, Zoey opened Midas' message first the time sent was 7:00 AM. All it said was, 'Merry Christmas, darling'. Zoey blushed with glee as she quickly texted back, 'Merry Christmas, sweetie.' along with a couple of festive emojis. 

Once Zoey received verification that the message had gone through, she went back to check the text from Power Chord. She saw the time of the text message sent, 11:23 PM. Wait, why did Power Chord send a message that late to her? She noticed a picture attached to the text message. As soon as Zoey opened it, her blood ran cold. 

Right on her screen was a picture of her and Midas kissing under the mistletoe from the Christmas Eve party. With Midas holding onto Zoey's hand. It looked like the photo was taken on the dance floor. Though slightly blurry, she could make it out as clear as day. Right down at the bottom of the picture was the text message from Power Chord. 'Yo, when were you going to tell us that you are fucking Midas.'

All Zoey could do at that moment was emit a blood-curdling scream.


End file.
